Yacht Registration under the Cook Islands Flag

The Cook Islands Ship Registry registers Private and Commercial Yachts and is modelled on the British system, with the benefit of nominated jurisdiction for mortgage purposes etc.

Cook Islands Ship Registry is available for private and commercial yachts from 20 metres to unlimited size, the registry operates differently to others, in that a company or representative on the island is not mandatory, this function being performed by membership of a wholly owned yacht club ( Cook Islands Yacht Squadron ). Also, it is not compulsory for yachts to be in class with a classification society, providing they are well constructed and maintained.

Advantages of registering your vessel in the Cook Islands

Cook Islands private yachts are permitted to stay in EU waters for up to 18 months under the temporary importation (TI) scheme, then they must exit for at least one day, then they can return.

Vessels can be registered for one, three, or five years.

For pleasure yachts under 24 metres, no separate survey is required, the owner completes the safety survey and equipment list himself.

Provisional registration lasts for 3 months and is very fast, usually three days. Everything is done by e-mail.

No company is required in the Cook Islands, you just join the CIYS yacht club (100% owned by the registry) and that allows you to register as many boats as you own. Joining the yacht club is two ticks on the application form and the membership lasts the same time as the registration.

Can be owned by an individual, several people, or a company registered anywhere.

Cook Islands registered Commercial Yachts do not need to leave EU waters providing they register with a charter agent and operate within local rules.

Cost to register a yacht under 24 meters
Cost: $3,300 USD which includes Cook Islands fees. Fees include a Radio Licence, International Call Sign and MMSI number, all of which last the same time as the registration. We give free advice and support during the whole period of registration.

Cost to register a yacht over 24 meters
For yachts over 24 metres, the fee would be $4,800 USD which includes Cook Islands fees. A simple survey is required, which the owners can obtain locally, or we can quote if necessary.

For COMMERCIAL YACHTS:
Cook Islands registered Commercial Yachts do not need to leave EU waters providing they register with a charter agent and operate within local rules. Same package and advantages as Pleasure Yachts, except the yachts would need to comply with the Safety Code for the Cook Islands and be inspected by ourselves or a nominated local surveyor.

MMSI Radio License – for VHF, AIS, radar and EPIRB

It is mandatory in most countries to have a valid MMSI / radio license on your boat so we recommend our boat owners to apply for a MMSI / Radio license when applying for the Polish flag registration. The license permits the following equipment: VHF Radio, radar, epirb, transponder & radar and assigns the numbers needed to operate correctly. We can arrange a Polish or UK MMSI radio license for our clients. The cost is the same but the Polish MMSI license requires a bit more paperwork and the UK MMSI license only requires a passport copy.

You have 2 choices in getting a MMSI license:

United Kingdom MMSI radio license: It only takes us 24 hours to obtain your UK, MMSI license and we only need a copy of your passport to apply. Having a MMSI license onboard avoids problems when you are checked by local authorities. The cost of an MMSI license is only 149 Euro with a boat registration or 199 Euro if registered without. Even if you have a Polish registration, you can still have a UK MMSI license to combine it with.

Polish MMSI radio license: The Polish registration needs the following paperwork

If the owner of the boat is a company
- copy company documents
- device list (brand and model). You can register the following the devices: radio vhf + optional: radar, epirb, transponder and radar.
- declaration of conformity CE for each device (we can help you with this)
- authorization for us to register you (we provide this form).

If the owner of the boat is a private person
- a copy of the radio operator's certificates, can be any European radio operators certificate
- device list (brand and model). You can register the following the devices: radio vhf + optional: radar, epirb, transponder and radar.
- declaration of conformity CE for each device (we can help you with this)
- authorization for us to register you (we provide this form).

Both the UK and Polish MMSI/ radio license cost €149 in combination with any flag registration or €199 if you order it alone.

	USA (Delaware)	United Kingdom	Poland
How fast can it be done?	3 Days	3 Days	2-3 Days (Provisional)
Available for all nationalities	Yes	Yes	Yes
Validation Period	1 or 3 years	5 years	For life
Flag certificate	Yes	Yes	Yes
Ownership registration	Yes	Yes	Yes
Survey mandatory	No	Yes	No
Valid worldwide	Yes	Yes	Yes
Suitable for commercial yachts	No	Yes	Yes
Price from	185 USD	549 GBP	469 EUR
	more info	more info	more info

USA (Delaware)

United Kingdom

Poland

How fast can it be done?

3 Days

2-3 Days (Provisional)

Available for all nationalities

Yes

Validation Period

1 or 3 years

5 years

For life

Flag certificate

Yes

Ownership registration

Yes

Survey mandatory

Yes

Valid worldwide

Yes

Suitable for commercial yachts

Yes

Price from

185 USD

549 GBP

469 EUR

more info

Yacht Registration under the Cook Islands Flag

Yacht Registration under the Cook Islands Flag

MMSI Radio License – for VHF, AIS, radar and EPIRB

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